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Borrowed from the Dundee Model Aircraft Club
The Cuban Eight is a fairly standard aerobatic maneuver and is not particularly difficult. It does however require a lot of practice to get it spot on.
The idea is to do two circular maneuvers, one upwind and one downwind of the pilot's stance. The central part of the maneuver is the crossover where the model rolls from inverted to upright. It requires considerable practice to get a good cross over, down the 45° lines and in the centre.
You can see immediately that the model must pass the centreline before the model is pulled up for the first circle.
A very common maneuver is the Half Cuban Eight and is usually used as a turn around end maneuver. Only one half of a Cuban Eight is carried out (Duh!) with the model reversing it's direction from the entry position. If used as a turn around, the whole maneuver is displaced to the left or right and is usually followed by some kind of center maneuver - a loop for example.
If you can do something one way then you can usually reverse it! Much the same as a Cuban Eight, the Reverse Cuban Eight is no more difficult. This time however, you have to start the maneuver before you reach the centerline.
The Half Reverse Cuban Eight has a major advantage over the standard Half Cuban Eight for a turn around. You finish the maneuver much earlier - and so further away - with the wings level which gives you a good run in for any following maneuvers. This is a highly recommended means of turning the model around.
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